JUST forty-one years have passed since one memorable evening in March, when the headquarters staff of the army in Bengal stood in sorrowful assembly round an open grave in the grounds of La Martinière at Lucknow. At their head was Sir Colin Campbell, Commanderin-Chief in India, within a few days to be hailed as captor of Lucknow and final victor over the great sepoy revolt; and as the funeral service terminated, the veteran general, overcome by emotion, exclaimed with tears in his eyes, "I have lost one of the finest officers in the army!"

The man who had earned such an epitaph from his chief was William Stephen Raikes Hodson, than whom no single man had done more to wards completing the success of the British arms in the terrible struggle then nearing its termination. None had surpassed, if indeed any had equalled, his reputation for gallantry and unflinching determination; and to this day the mention of his name does not fail to evoke an interest to which the memories of his prowess lend the glamour of romance.

The story of Hodson's life has been told more than once, but in no case, perhaps, without partiality, favour, or affection, as the old military phrase has it-though it should be added that in some of the more prominent cases the prejudice has been all in disfavour of the subject of this paper.

A school friend and contemporary of Tom Hughes, Hodson had an eloquent supporter in that charming and enthusiastic writer; and there is a pleasant legend, which one would like to believe to be wholly correct, that the character of Harry East, the inseparable chum of our much-beloved Tom Brown, was a faithful portrait of "Larky Pritchard," as Hodson was called by his intimates at Rugby. In moral qualities, however, East, as drawn by Tom Hughes, does not resemble, because he is not the equal of, Hodson. One of the most merciless detractors of the latter has indeed given prominence to an estimate of his character as a boy, which declares him to have been "not of any high principle"; but how unfair such an estimate must have been, the reader may judge from the fact that he was selected by Arnold to be præpostor in a house where disciplinary reform was needed, and that the choice was fully justified by the results obtained. The master of the house at this time was Cotton, afterwards Bishop of Calcutta; and it is no small testimony to Hodson's high character that such a man should afterwards have written of him: "I cannot say how much I regret that I shall not be welcomed in India by the head of my dear old house at Rugby."

It was, however, in his feats in athletics—especially in his

ance.

running powers-that Hodson resembled, and indeed seems to have been the model for, the character of Harry East. As a runner, Tom Hughes tell us, "he was almost unequalled, and showed great powers of endurNone of his old schoolfellows have been surprised to hear of his success [in India], or of his marvellous marches. Such performances only carry us back to first calling over, when we used to see him come in splashed and hot, and to hear his cheery 'Old fellow, I've been to Brinklow since dinner.'" Indeed, the "Larky Pritchard" of those Rugby days must have pretty accurately foreshadowed, both in physical powers and in force of character, the future leader of the Guides and the founder of Hodson's Horse.

Hodson was a born soldier, but there seems to have been

some hesitation or difficulty about his following the career for which he was so specially suited. From Rugby he went to Cambridge, where he took his degree, and it was not until he was well on in his twenty-fifth year that he arrived in India, as a cadet in the Company's service. This fact was the secret of many of the difficulties, as well as of some of the successes, of his subsequent life. On entering the Bengal army he found himself junior in rank to many men much younger than himself, a position little to the liking of one who was by nature inclined to be imperious and impatient of control, and accustomed in his early

youth to take a leading place amongst his associates. At the same time he realised, and rightly so, that by reason of his education, as well as of his natural gifts, he was intellectually the superior of most of those about him. It was not long before this superiority brought him prominently to the notice of the officers under whom he served: the fact marked him out as peculiarly fitted for extra-regimental employment, while his unfavourable position in his regiment made him particularly ready to accept any such special appointment.

It was with the native regiment to which he was posted on arrival in India (the 2nd Bengal Grenadiers) that Hodson saw his first service, together with fighting as hard and stern as any in which he was destined to take part in after years. His letters home give graphic descriptions of some of the great battles of the Sutlej campaign. Young and inexperienced as he was, Hodson could not but be struck by the unsteadiness of some of the native regiments, and his remarks are an interesting corroboration of the severe strictures passed by Major George Broadfoot on the moral of the Bengal army of that time. These strictures were published many years afterwards in Broadfoot's Memoirs, and although attempts have been made to discredit his testimony, it cannot be doubted that the estimate formed by him was accurate. The army of Bengal, recruited almost entirely

from the Mussulmans and Brahmans of Rohilkhand and Oudh, had deteriorated in every way since the days when constant internecine struggles kept alive a warlike spirit in the country. The climate and the characteristics of the people alike conduce to a rapid evaporation of energy, when the motive for exertion is removed; and more than half a century under the Pax Britannica had worked much change in what had formerly been regarded as the best recruiting material in

India.

1

These were the reasons which led Hodson, immediately the war was over, to apply for a transfer to a British regiment, and in May 1846 he was accordingly posted to the 1st Bengal European Fusiliers, the most distinguished infantry corps in the Company's service. He was not destined, however, to do much duty in his new regiment. While at Lahore, after the Sikh war, he met for the first time Henry Lawrence, then a major, and just appointed President of the new governing body of the Punjab. No one ever came in contact with the eldest and noblest of the Lawrence brothers without being attracted as much by his commanding intellect as by his lovable and charming personality, and in this case the liking inspired by the older man was returned by him towards the young subaltern. In the following summer Hodson stayed with Major Lawrence at Simla, and how intimate they became,

and how thoroughly competent must Lawrence have been to form a just estimate of young Hodson's character, may be gathered from the fact that they spent several weeks together, not only in the same house, but sharing the same room. In the autumn of this year (1846) Hodson accompanied Lawrence on а prolonged expedition to Jummu and the valley of Kashmir, and three years later the two men were again companions on a similar trip-in fact, Sir Henry Lawrence remained a firm friend and generous supporter of his protégé up to the time of the former's untimely death. Hodson's detractors have endeavoured to show that his "moral turpitude" on several occasions, notably in 1846 and 1849, forced Lawrence unwillingly to abandon his confidence in him. Nevertheless we find Sir Henry writing in 1850 to his brother George:

Hodson, who makes a good travelling "I have had a very nice tour with companion, energetic, clever, and well-informed. I don't know why you did not take to him at Peshawar. He has his faults, positiveness and self-will amongst them."

And again to Lord Dalhousie in 1849:

"From education, ability, and zeal there is no man in the Punjab better fitted to become an excellent civil officer. His faults are, that he is aware of his ability, and is apt to arrogate too much."

As late as 1853 Lawrence wrote to Lord Hardinge:

"The present commander [of the

Guides] is a young fellow, Hodson by name, whom you gave me at Lahore in 1847. He is a first-rate soldier, and as your lordship likes young officers in command, I beg to bring him to your notice for a brevet majority."

This letter was followed by one to Hodson himself, written in a most friendly strain, and dated July 18, 1853, from which the following is an extract:

"By last mail I wrote to Lord Hardinge and asked him to get you brevet rank. You had better write to Sir C. Napier (but don't use my name, or it might do you harm) and say that if he moves in your favour you think Lord Hardinge will agree. If you could get local rank until you are a captain, it would be a great

matter."

Now the writers who would have us believe that Hodson's "moral turpitude" as early as 1846 and 1849 came to the knowledge of Sir Henry Lawrence and destroyed the confidence of the latter in him, are shown by these letters to make, indirectly, a very serious charge against Lawrence himself. For they would represent that an officer, who was well known to have been guilty of gross dishonesty, was recommended by Sir Henry first for a civil post of trust and responsibility, and secondly, for a considerable advance in military rank. The accusations against Hodson here referred to are of a very vague nature; but even were it otherwise, the continued friendship and support of Sir Henry Lawrence would be sufficient disproof of their credibility.

In any case, however, the success of Hodson's career during his first eight years in India

VOL. CLXV.—NO. MI.

was not marred by any public imputations on his character; and he was promoted from one confidential post to another with a rapidity which was as startling as were the achievements with which he proved the justice of his selection.

In the autumn of 1847, with but two years' service, he was appointed second in command of the Corps of Guides, then only lately raised by Henry Lumsden; and six months later he was delighted at receiving instructions to accompany an important mission, under Mr Vans Agnew of the civil service, which was about to start for Multan with the object of receiving over the government of that province from the hands of its ruler Mulraj. Subsequently, however, other arrangements were made, and Lieutenant Anderson of the Bombay army was sent with the mission in Hodson's stead. The latter was inclined to be disappointed at having missed the service; but this feeling was changed to one of thankfulness at his escape, when a month later came the news that Vans Agnew and Anderson had been treacherously murdered at the bidding of Mulraj. This outrage was the signal for a general rising of the Sikhs, which rapidly developed into the second Sikh war, and only terminated with the annexation of the Punjab. Meanwhile, when his appointment to Multan fell through, Hodson was appointed to be assistant to the Resident at Lahore; but it was in his military capacity as second in command of the Guides that he

2 M

from the Mussulmans and Brahmans of Rohilkhand and Oudh, had deteriorated in every way since the days when constant internecine struggles kept alive a warlike spirit in the country. The climate and the characteristics of the people alike conduce to a rapid evaporation of energy, when the motive for exertion is removed; and more than half a century under the Pax Britannica had worked much change in what had formerly been regarded as the best recruiting material in India.

1

These were the reasons which led Hodson, immediately the war was over, to apply for a transfer to a British regiment, and in May 1846 he was accordingly posted to the 1st Bengal European Fusiliers, the most distinguished infantry corps in the Company's service. He was not destined, however, to do much duty in his new regiment. While at Lahore, after the Sikh war, he met for the first time Henry Lawrence, then a major, and just appointed President of the new governing body of the Punjab. No one ever came in contact with the eldest and noblest of the Lawrence brothers without being attracted as much by his commanding intellect as by his lovable and charming personality, and in this case the liking inspired by the older man was returned by him towards the young subaltern. In the following summer Hodson stayed with Major Lawrence at Simla, and how intimate they became,

and how thoroughly competent must Lawrence have been to form a just estimate of young Hodson's character, may be gathered from the fact that they spent several weeks together, not only in the same house, but sharing the same

room.

In the autumn of this year (1846) Hodson accompanied Lawrence on a prolonged expedition to Jummu and the valley of Kashmir, and three years later the two men were again companions on a similar trip-in fact, Sir Henry Lawrence remained a firm friend and generous supporter of his protégé up to the time of the former's untimely death. Hodson's detractors have endeavoured to show that his "moral turpitude" on several occasions, notably in 1846 and 1849, forced Lawrence unwillingly to abandon his confidence in him. Nevertheless we find Sir Henry writing in 1850 to his brother George:

Hodson, who makes a good travelling "I have had a very nice tour with companion, energetic, clever, and well-informed. I don't know why you did not take to him at Peshawar. He has his faults, positiveness and self-will amongst them."

And again to Lord Dalhousie in 1849:

"From education, ability, and zeal there is no man in the Punjab better fitted to become an excellent civil officer. His faults are, that he is aware of his ability, and is apt to arrogate too much."